Concern
by Madi Starlight
Summary: One-shot: Dick decides he needs to take a breather for the day and heads to the Cave to find a certain friend. What would he do without her? (Pre-Invasion, a bit of fluff, nothing much) Pairing: Chalant


**Authors note: this my first published fic, my first Chalant fic, and my first one-shot, so I hope you enjoy it. Excuse the mess. And please comment~ happy reading! Edit: fixed typo's, grammar, etc. should be decent now **

Robin knew Zatanna would be at the Cave at this time. It was Saturday, so she didn't normally have anything to do. Also, neither of the girls had mentioned any plans, so as long as it was before lunch, they were normally free to chill. Only now, what might have been just hanging out for Zatanna, was really escape from Robin. Things had been less that asterous on his last patrol. Now that he had punished himself with an extra few hours (or 5) of vigorous training since yesterday, it was time for some downtime.

Clad in civilian clothing, the Zeta computer scanned him as he stepped through the familiar blue "out-of-order" telephone box and the beam sprang to life. "RECOGNIZED: ROBIN B01" came its voice as he walked in. Pivoting, he headed almost instinctively towards the living room. Once realizing she wasn't there, he turned towards her room. "Zee?" He asked knocking twice. No reply. He frowned a bit. The Cave was unusually quiet. So maybe everyone _had_ planned something. Was it that none were present besides himself, Wolf, and Sphere? He could try calling her...but what would he say? Deciding against it, he sighed and headed back to the living room. Maybe Wally was online somewhere and available for trolling...turns out he was busy with his uncle, yet Dick stayed online.

After a few minutes of hacking a few people's accounts and busying himself with posting very...amusing things, his cell phone began to ring. Answering almost immediately, he found it was none other than Barbara Gordon. A part of him hoped she wasn't doing anything either so he might be able to distract himself further. "...you sure you don't need some homework help then? ...Yeah...Nope, actually I'm pretty, um, traught right now...yeah, hope you do well...uh huh...see ya." So, maybe she was busy too then. He didn't tend to do well when he was left alone with his thoughts. Going back to the Wayne Manor wasn't an option right now though, even if Alfred was there... Bringing his knees to his chest, he buried his face in his crossed arms and exhaled slowly.

"Robin?" Came a voice from behind. Only slightly startled, he looked up quickly, eyes widening when he recognized the person in front of him. "Zee? W-when did you-I mean-how did you-" She laughed a bit and shrugged. "I was trying out a new teleportation spell. Brought myself here. Conner and M'gann were out again, I didn't think anyone was here. Sorry, was I bothering you? You seemed deep in thought..." Shaking his head, he stood, not fully understanding the relief that filled him at the site of her. "Sounds asterous. Not many people can sneak up on me. You weren't bothering me, trust me. I'm actually really glad to see you." He said smiling and standing. A smile crossed her face, as well as a light blush, but it soon faded.

"Are you...sure you're all right?" He hesitated, not really sure how to answer her. The situation didn't really concern her, nor did she need to know. Also, Batman wouldn't really approve. Instead, he simply nodded. "Yep, a bit whelmed, can't say I've done anything productive lately though." His eyebrows rose as he caught himself. "I-I mean I have, just not in the past hour. Eh, not to say I was really bored. I just-" She began to giggle and took his hand, halting his stammering. "It's okay, I understand. I was a bit bored too. Why don't we...go occupy ourselves?" He grinned and relaxed a bit and the touch of her hand over his. "Sure. Got any ideas?" Nodding, she raised up her hands. "I know just the place. Noitacol suoiverp ot su tropelet!"

Instantly they were both teleported to a very familiar place in Gotham city, a café is more precise. Smiling widely, she looked over at him. "Remember this place?" He grinned recalling their 'date' and nodded. "How could I forget?" Motioning in front of him, he followed the routine Alfred had made him practice so many times. He bowed from the waist politely as he opened the door for her. "After you, Mademoiselle." Nodding in acknowledgment as she stepped through the door, she smiled and thanked him.

Once they were taken to their seats and had both ordered, a sorrowful look came across her face and she looked into her lap. "You okay, Zee?" He asked, frowning in concern. "I...I want to apologize for lying to you earlier." He blinked in surprise. "What?" Chewing her lower lip, she continued to avoid his gaze. "I know back at the Cave I said I just got there, but...I never left. I was watching you the entire time." Confusion filled him. Not so much from the fact that she'd lied. It was a small lie, nothing to get too afraid over, but how much had she seen? Why watch him if she knew he wasn't doing anything? Closing his mouth -which he hadn't even known had dropped-, he cleared his throat. "W-why were you watching me?"

She hesitated. "Well, I heard you call me, so I tried to find you, but you kept walking around. When I found you, you seemed upset, and busy, so I guess I decided not to bother you...And then your friend called and I got a bit concerned. That's when I decided to see if you were really okay. I figured you wouldn't be very whelmed if you knew I'd been, er, eavesdropping on everything, so I just said I'd been practicing spells. I'm really sorry. I just wanted to make sure you were okay. A-are you okay?" Looking away, he leaned forward on his knees. On one hand, he appreciated her concern. On the other hand, he had no idea what to say. He couldn't tell her...or could he?

"I...um..." Glancing back, he realized she was staring hard at him with concerned eyes. "Zee, I...appreciate your concern. I don't see why you would have to hide...I don't think I would have gotten very upset anyways." When her expression didn't change, he continued. "I did need to see you today, and I'm glad you brought me here. It's just...well...Bat-" At that moment, the waiter came with their food, leaving in front of them.

Thanking the man in French, he smiled best he could and took a sip of his drink before continuing in a low voice. "Patrol was pretty _dis_asterous, heavy on the dis. I can't really say anything beyond that other than...Batman isn't very pleased with me, and I just needed to get out for a bit." Reaching out, she placed her hand on top of his and squeezed. "I understand now. I'm sorry about that and...I'm sorry I may have added to the _dis _today." He smiled a bit and placed his other hand on top of hers. "No, really, this is perfect. And I must say...I was touched by your concern. I know I can trust you anyways." She seemed to sigh in relief and pulled back her hand, picking up her fork. "Well, I'll do my best to make it up to you yet. For now, bon appetite." Laughing a bit, he nodded and repeated the phrase in his best French accent. "Bon appetite."


End file.
